I remember one incident which I heard from the lotus lips of Gurudev. Once a well-known, rich person came to a Tridandi Swami and started praising Gaudiya Math. He told, “You people of the Math are great renunciates. You do not consume tea, coffee or any other intoxicants. Even you do not take onion, garlic etc. I have not seen renunciates like you.” Then that Swamiji replied, “No, no, we are not renunciates, you are even a greater renunciate than us.” Hearing so that person became ashamed. He put his both hands on his ears and said, “What are you saying? Please do not say like this. You do not know me. I drink alcohol, I eat meat etc. I eat all non-eatables things. Please do not call me a renunciate.” Then again the Swamiji said, “You are even greater renunciate.” That person said, “It incurs offense to me, please do not say like this.” Swamiji again told, “See! You are a great renunciate. We have renounced very insignificant things, which have no value, but you have renounced the greatest, most precious thing, Supreme Lord. So, who is the greater renunciate?”

So, to engage everything including oneself which belongs to Supreme Lord into the service of Him is the topmost devotion. To encourage us, once our Gurudev instructed us in his writing, āmar-bhajan—my devotional practice, he has written in that. Once a person came to him and asked him, “It is not that I do not have any faith in Supreme Lord. I have faith in Him and in Harikatha also. I also have understood that material desires are painful, but I cannot leave those desires. So in such a situation should I leave my devotional practices?”

In reply to his query, Srila Gurudev narrated three verses from the eleventh canto of Srimad Bhagavatam,

jāta-śraddho mat-kathāsu
nirviṇṇaḥ sarva-karmasu
veda duḥkhātmakān kāmān
parityāge ’py anīśvaraḥ

tato bhajeta māṁ prītaḥ
śraddhālur dṛḍha-niścayaḥ
juṣamāṇaś ca tān kāmān
duḥkhodarkāṁś ca garhayan

proktena bhakti-yogena
bhajato māsakṛn muneḥ
kāmā hṛdayyā naśyanti
sarve mayi hṛdi sthite
(Srimad Bhagavatam 11.20.27-29)

“Having awakened faith in the narrations of My glories, being disgusted with all material activities, knowing that all sense gratification leads to misery, but still being unable to renounce all sense enjoyment, My devotee remains happy and worships Me with great faith and conviction. Even though he is sometimes engaged in sense enjoyment, My devotee knows that all sense gratification leads to a miserable result, and he sincerely repents such activities. When an intelligent person engages constantly in worshiping Me through loving devotional service as described by Me, his heart becomes firmly situated in Me. Thus all material desires within the heart are destroyed.”

Supreme Lord says, “My devotees have awakened faith in the narrations of My glories.” They are disgusted with material life and are thus detached from ordinary, fruitive activities in this world knowing that all the desires for sense gratification leads to misery. Wherever desires exist, miseries are also there. All the evil desires to enjoy this material world will surely give us sufferings. This person replied, “I know it very well but still I cannot leave desires, what to do?” Supreme Lord says,

tato bhajeta māṁ prītaḥ
śraddhālur dṛḍha-niścayaḥ
juṣamāṇaś ca tān kāmān
duḥkhodarkāṁś ca garhayan

“Still you do not leave My bhajan.” Ambarish Maharaj was such a great devotee that even the curse of Durvasa Risi could not harm him. He was a great emperor of the whole world and a great devotee of Supreme Lord. He had not become a great devotee all of a sudden. No one can win over the desires in one day. So there is no need to get disappointed. Ambarish Maharaj could remove all worldly desires gradually by performing bhajan without deceitfulness.

A conditioned soul cannot get the desired result all of a sudden. Supreme Lord says, “Do not leave My bhajan”. It is said, hari se lag rah re bhai teri banat banat ban jaya—if you keep worshipping Hari always then it is sure that you will attain the highest auspiciousness in due course of time. Supreme Lord says, “Worship Me with great faith and conviction.” If one may not immediately be able to completely extinguish the enjoying spirit, the Lord encourages such a devotee not to get disheartened or morose but to remain enthusiastic and to go on with his loving service. If you are not able to give up or relinquish your sense enjoying tendency immediately then accept the object of senses with a feeling of repentance thinking, “It is not good for my eternal welfare; it is going to ruin everything and I will have to give it up at any cost.” If we accept with such mentality then our attachment to it will diminish gradually. Do not accept it with easy mentality and with the feeling of enjoyment. While performing haribhajan when we realize the sweetness of Supreme Lord then we could be saved. We should pay attention to the verse from Bhagavad Gita and its commentary by Bhaktivinoda Thakur, in this regard.

viṣayā vinivartante
nirāhārasya dehinaḥ
rasa-varjaḿ raso ‘py asya
paraḿ dṛṣṭvā nivartate
(Srimad Bhagavad Gita 2.59)

When a person experiences the higher taste, his attachment to lower tastes automatically ceases.

Bhaktivinoda Thakur writes in the commentary, karmis and gyanis try to restrict their senses by keeping sensual objects away from sense organs but this is not the process to control the senses organs, it will be futile. Foolish people try this way. Mahagyani Saubhari Risi tried to control his senses this way but he faced a spiritual fall by seeing the mating of fishes in water. Mahayogi Vishvamitra faced fall down by having a sight of Menaka. Until you have tasted the higher mellows, you cannot leave the attachment for lower tastes. You have to realize the sweetness of Supreme Lord.

Our Paramgurudev even allowed persons having a little of faith in performing haribhajan to stay in Math for sadhusang even though they had kama, krodha, lobha, moha and everything in them. Because while performing bhajan, gradually, they will develop the taste for Supreme Lord’s worship and their attachment for material world will diminish and there will be a permanent solution for all the problems. But until one has not tasted that sweetness, there always remains a fear of fall down. Just by restricting the senses, tendency of enjoyment will not go.

When I joined the institution, we used to observe Ekadashi vow with great austerity. Only a few pieces of fruit were given to us. All were feeling pain in the stomach. What is the use of taking such small quantity (hunger will not be ceased)? Now we take large quantity of fruits especially in Punjab when we go, large quantity of fruits are given on Ekadashi. So much so that even on Dwadashi day (the next day of Ekadashi) we do not need to eat anything! But still our hunger does not get satisfied because we have become dependent on grains. We feel that we will die soon without eating rice. We prepare food items to be eaten on Dwadashi in advance. So by not taking food for one day, our tendency to eat does not go. By restricting senses from their object, one cannot become free from it but when we engage our senses in the service of the Supreme Lord, gradually, we relish the taste of His sweetness and then our attachment for the material objects diminish automatically. But until we experience that taste, fear of falling down is always there.

tato bhajeta māṁ prītaḥ
śraddhālur dṛḍha-niścayaḥ
juṣamāṇaś ca tān kāmān
duḥkhodarkāṁś ca garhayan

So Supreme Lord says here, always follow devotional path, bhakti-yoga. Do not leave that path. Engage yourself in shravan (hearing), kirtan (chanting). Then hridi sthite—I will enter in your heart and be situating there, I will destroy all the unwanted material desires present in your heart. If I leave bhajan, who will destroy them? I am in ignorance, in darkness but by beating darkness with a stick, will I be able to dispel it? When light comes, darkness will go automatically and all the problems created by darkness will also go away. That light is Supreme Lord. Why the door of heart should be closed for Supreme Lord? Thinking like, “I have so many bad impressions of previous lives, I have enjoying tendency so I am not eligible to perform bhajan”, you should not stop bhajan. You continue anyways, do not leave it. Supreme Lord is always there behind you. He already has said, “My devotee should not worry.”

api cet su-durācāro
bhajate mām ananya-bhāk
sādhur eva sa mantavyaḥ
samyag vyavasito hi saḥ
kṣipraṁ bhavati dharmātmā
śaśvac-chāntiṁ nigacchati
kaunteya pratijānīhi
na me bhaktaḥ praṇaśyati
(Srimad Bhagavad Gita 9.30-31)

Lord says, “If My devotee, due to bad impressions of previous birth, commits the most abominable action but if is engaged in one pointed devotion to Me, consider him a sadhu, a saintly person. Because he will have repentance for that and that fire of repentance will burn all his sins to ashes quickly. He is to be considered saintly because by situating in his determination, quickly he will be righteous and will attain everlasting peace.”

He further says, “O son of Kunti, declare it boldly in the assembly of karmis, yogis, gyanis and worshiper of demigods that My devotee will never perish.” So why do we need to worry? Supreme Lord Himself has said it.